Boy, 15, hurt in Hempstead stabbing

A 15-year-old Hempstead boy was seriously injured when he was stabbed while walking home from school yesterday afternoon, police said.

Less than a mile away, two young men were victims of an apparent random street shooting a few hours later.

Nassau police are investigating whether the two attacks, are related, and whether they could be gang related.

The 15-year-old, a student at Hempstead High School, was walking home on Peninsula Boulevard about 3:15 p.m. when he was attacked, police said.

"He was surrounded by a large group," according to Third Squad Det. Sgt. James Watson. "It doesn't appear to be robbery."

After he was stabbed in the abdomen "the victim began to run from the scene and collapsed several yards away," Watson said.

The boy was rushed to a hospital and underwent emergency surgery, police said.

Late Monday night, investigators had not been able to fully interview him, Watson said.

The boy was listed in serious but stable condition, police said.

An 18-year-old and a 21-year-old were shot and wounded while walking separately on Martin Luther King Drive, shortly before 8 p.m., police said.

Both men were wounded at least once each when a large number of shots were fired from what police said they believe was a passing vehicle. Their wounds were not considered life-threatening, police said.

A number of fatal stabbing and shooting deaths have occurred in Hempstead in recent years and many were determined by authorities to be gang related.

The Park Lake Residence complex, with about 250 apartment units, is within walking distance of both of Monday's attacks and several of the earlier ones.

A woman representing Concerned Citizens of Park Lake said Monday that the organization wants to schedule a meeting with police and Hempstead's mayor to work on providing greater security in the area.

She didn't want her name used because of safety concerns.

"We want to be able to come out of our house and be safe," the woman said.